Haunted Pumpkin Diorama!

Hey holiday DIY experts! 
Oh my goodness, I'm so obsessed with this new festive project! HouseMart Ben Franklin still has a few of these dense carve-able Styrofoam pumpkins left, and it occurred to me that I could build a scene inside of one!

Supplies:
Dense styrofoam pumpkin
xacto blade
acrylic paint in 2 colors of gray, black, red, butter yellow, and dark purple
1" wide nylon brush
cup of rinsing water / paper towel
black spray paint
BoBunny black Perler Pen
circular wood disc
sticks that look like a tree
Halloween resin miniatures (jack-o-lantern and gravestone)
copper wired firefly lights (3 AA batteries) 
hot glue / hot glue gun
assorted moss
paper cutout of a moon

First using your xacto blade, cut out an oval circle shape from your pumpkin. 

Next, paint your pumpkin outside dark gray. When dry, lightly and roughly brush the light gray over it. Spray paint the inside black and wait to dry.

Once dry, paint inside the pumpkin with acrylics a sky gradient with the colors blended from black, to purple, to red, to yellow all the way to the bottom, so that the inside of your pumpkin looks like a perfect background for a creepy sunset!

Wait to dry, and then set up wood disc and Firefly lights battery pack inside the base of your pumpkin. Hot glue in place. Allow for easy access to change batteries as necessary. 

Hot glue the paper moon to the inside ceiling of the pumpkin with a clear thread. Hot glue mosses and tree and resin miniatures in place. Again allow for easy battery changes. 

Hot glue the firefly lights every 3 bulbs to the inner circle of the pumpkin. This will create really nice front lighting. I avoided putting any lights too far back. 

Then I used the black BoBunny Perler Pen and made raised tiny black dots all the way around the opening of the pumpkin.

So super cute!
Hope everyone is having fun getting into the spirit of the season! Have a great week!

Bethany @Enchanted Lake

Spook-tacular Skull Wreath

Hi creative crafters! I'm so pumped for this autumn season and wanted to share with you guys a few spooky ideas to spruce up the house for Halloween! HouseMart Ben Franklin just got in a great selection of really cute and spooky Halloween items. Today's project is a skull wreath!

Supplies: 
1 roll of 1" wide black ribbon
1 roll of 1" wide white ribbon
12"-14" Styrofoam wreath 
hot glue / hot glue gun
bag of skulls 
1 black feather boa 

 First, wrap simultaneously the black and white ribbon around your Styrofoam wreath. Use hot glue to secure the beginning and the ending. You will wrap ribbon around 1/2 of the wreath.

 Next, wrap the feather boa around the other 1/2 of the wreath, hot gluing the two ends of the boa to the ribbon to secure it.

 Finally, hot glue your skulls in place! I placed mine off to the side for an asymmetrical feel to break up the symmetry of the stripes. I even used some of the net bag as a netting accent! And simple as that, it's ready for the front door! Have a spooky good time playing with Halloween Decor! 

Bethany @Enchanted Lake 

Crackle Apothecary Bottles!

Hi everyone!
I hope you guys have been having a great summer! I know it feels so soon, but I've already been getting into the swing of fall! It will be here before we know it! Plus I love fall crafts, so I'm actually pretty excited about this change of pace. Today's craft is apothecary jars! Ben Franklin just got in some more really cute bottles and jars, and I wanted to really transform them into aged and crackled ingredient bottles!

Supplies: 
3 glass bottles of assorted sizes
spray paint in black, and gold
crackle gel
paint brush
acrylic paints in gray, charcoal, and gecko green
jute
black cardstock
white pen
hole punch
scissors
optional: gloss sealer spray (to keep them from chipping)


First, you'll need to wipe down your bottles. Then spray one by one with your black and gold. Let sit to dry for 15-30 mins.

Once they are dry to the touch, using your brush, apply a generous coat of the clear crackle gel to the entire visible surface of your bottle. (There's no real need to do the bottom.)

 

Next, wait about 5 minutes for the gel to dry enough to feel "tacky" instead of "wet". 
Then will a clean brush, one color at a time, lay strokes of paint over the gel. Be careful to not mix the gel and top layer of paint. The key is to lay the paint right on top. The thicker your paint, the thicker the cracks will become. The thinner the paint, the smaller and finer the cracks will become. It's perfectly fine to have a mixture of thicknesses! I think it adds more dimension and variety to the crackle. After all, when things age, they don't age and wear down in exactly the same way in all places!

The direction of your strokes also really matters. You want to stay consistent and brush in all the same angles:
-all up and down
-all side to side
This technique will create an organized look about your piece. Like wood grain. 

 You can really tell in the paint stroke direction in this picture! The green bottle I went up and down, and the gray one I went side to side. Also the gray one had thicker paint strokes, so you can really see the cracks more visibly!

For the tags, I cut out squares from black card stock, hole punched the tops, and hand wrote the creepy crawly ingredients! I also drew a white border around the edges of the paper, and then I tied them on with Jute!

Have fun with your crackle paint!
It's available at any local House Mart Ben Franklin.
Happy crafting!

Bethany @Enchanted Lake

Ceramic Pineapples!

Happy Maker's Monday!
Today is a great day to decorate pineapples!
House Mart Ben Franklin stores just got in these really cute white ceramic home decor pineapples, and I was really itching to decorate them and add some color. There are so many ways you can add color to ceramic, I wanted to show you using some simple techniques and tools. 

This first pineapple is my FAVORITE!
All you need is alcohol ink in 2 greens and 2 oranges. 
I used a cotton swab, or a small square of felt, and squeezed a few drops on to the piece, and then promptly rubbed it on the surface of the pineapple. Because I only wanted the color to stick to the outer bumpies, I made sure to not press too hard and let the ink touch only the parts that stick out. Alcohol ink is SO easy to use! You can add splatters and drips, and because it acts like watercolor, you can get some really beautiful color blends by swirling multiple colors together. A little bit goes a LONG way. I must have only used 8 drops for this entire pineapple. The more drops you add, the more intense the color gets! Have fun using this technique on ceramic, or glass!
I finished this off by tying some jute around the leaves to give it a 'diy'-textured feel.

This next pineapple is very classy and is super easy to replicate! (I also love that this entertaining decor can be used as a candle stick, or single cupcake server, or votive holder!) I used 'Testor's' gold enamel and simply applied it with a brush! Easy as that! It's very thick, but also very drippy so be sure to spread out the gold or else it will pool up and drip off into places you might not want to be glossy golden! This gold enamel is so much better than gold paint. It has a very strong bond, and maintains that golden glossy metallic surface! So gorgeous!

This next pineapple is probably the most quirky! Ben Franklin sells brush tip glass markers, and I wanted to test it on a white ceramic piece. They are really fun to play with and the felt tip is flexible. If you are familiar with calligraphy markers, or TomBow markers, the felt tip is just like those! These markers will look translucent on clear glass, very opaque on white ceramic. I definitely liked the bold fluid strokes on this white pineapple. The colors will also mix with each other if you overlap the strokes while each color is still wet. I also love modern calligraphy and typography so I threw a little 'aloha' at the top. It's also recommended to bake the color on, so that it becomes super permanent. It's not meant to be food safe, so only apply to areas that your mouth or food will not be!

Have fun playing!

Bethany @Enchanted Lake

I Like Big Cups & I Cannot Lie

Happy Maker's Monday! I was so inspired by this funny quote that I had to find a way to turn it into a wall sign. You can find your own favorite funny or inspirational quote and using just a few simple materials, can make your own very fancy sign! This simple idea can be used on SO many wooden surfaces, including boxes, and frames!

 
SUPPLIES:
Printed cardstock paper
matte Mod Podge
nylon paint brush
scissors/paper trimmer
white paint pen (either DecoColor or Montana)
pencil
wood pallet or board


First, pick a pretty paper to be the background for your quote! You will want to avoid choosing a paper that has too much contrast, so if it has a pattern, then it has to not have white or black in it. If you choose a dark paper, your text will really jump off the page, but the pattern might be harder to spot. 

Trim your paper down to size to fit neatly on the surface of your wood sign. 
Using your brush, generously coat the top of the wood, then lay down your paper. Seal the paper with a layer of matte Mod Podge over the paper surface.

Once it has dried, sketch out your quote lightly with your pencil.
Then use your white Montana marker, or white acrylic DecoColor marker to fill in your quote! I chose the 'I like big cups and I can not lie" as a silly statement to how much I love tea and coffee. Have fun with your quote! Even pair it with some mixed media and glue down some accessories. You can use beads, flowers, starfish, shells, washi tape, glitter, rhinestones, origami, moss, ribbon and so much more!

Happy crafting!

Bethany @Enchanted Lake 

Hinged Wooden Story Board

Happy Make-It Monday!
Today I'm having so much fun playing with image transfers on wood, and turning wood blocks into story boards! It's so cool when you can turn an image into a mixed media centerpiece! It would make a really great gift for a First Birthday Party, and is such a meaningful and adorable way to preserve a memory!

SUPPLIES:
smooth wood blocks/slices
hinges 
matte Mod Podge
brush
images printed on computer paper 
patterned cardstock sheets
3d stickers
washi tape
baker's twine string
scissors 
pop-up dots

For the front of this hinged story board, I used Mod Podge to glue the cardstock sheet to the wood, and then used pop-up dots to have the "This Little Monster" piece stick out.

In order to transfer an image to wood, all you need to do is apply a generous layer of Mod Podge to your surface, and image side down, place your paper on to the wood and allow it to full dry for at least an hour.

After the Mod Podge is dry, using water and your fingers, rub off the paper so that only the image remains! (Keep in mind that all of your images and any words will be mirror images of themselves.)

Attach hinges to 2 pieces of flat wood slices in order to create a book-like centerpiece!

Embellish your story board with a washi tape banner using the baker's twine, and some fun 3d stickers that add more texture and POP to your story. Use your original image as inspiration to choose the theme and colors of your papers and stickers. For this image I used the rustic vintage feeling of the wagon and outdoors, with the color palette of the balloons.

 

Have fun transferring images and have a great week!
Happy crafting!

Love, Bethany @ Enchanted Lake


Photo credit : 

boy in wagon : mamabee.com  : photographer unknown 
floating in the ocean : Instagram : @humblechics

We-R-Memory Keepers Tab Punch Board

Hey there, planner folks and scrapbooking lovers!

We just got in an awesome new punch board from the famous We-r-Memory line. 

They just keep on coming up with all these new boards, it's insane!

This new board is nice and compact, and is light blue and white just like their

popular Alpha punch boards.

Meet the new Tab Punch board!  This little guy's purpose is a simple one, and it is also
fairly simple to use, but there is so much you can do with it.  The tabs can be used to make dividers for planners, mini file folders, and even recipe cards!  Today, I will be showing you how to make mini folders with one of the papers from the incredibly adorable Simple Stories Emoji Love Scrapbook paper collection!  I cut out a 8x5 piece and then folded it, making one side of the fold about a 1/2 inch longer than the other.  This is so that there is room for the tab to pop out.

 

First, this little transparent blue bit, that you see right here can actually be moved around. Right now, it is lined up with the CORNER ROUNDER, which basically helps line the paper up to the puncher right above it so that, when punched, it creates a cute rounder edge on your page!

 

 

 

Next, the TAB!  Take the blue bit and move it over to the SIDE TAB notch.  This is what will make the puncher create the wavy sides of the tab.

 

Ta-DAAA!

 

To make the other side of the tab, flip the paper over.  There are Small, Medium and Large sizes that you can choose from.  All you have to do is line up the side that you already punched out to the indentation of whatever size you want on the board.  Here, I have it lined up to Medium.  Then, press that punch and you have your full tab! 

 

 

Lastly, time to get rid of that extra piece of paper that's just hanging out next to that tab!
Lift up the blue magnetic arm, take that iconic We-r-Memory cutting blade out of its little home and slide that sucker right over the piece of paper to cut!

 
 


Here is the finished little folder!  These would be so cute as inserts for planners as well as just little organizers for school, work or at home!  Here are examples of how you an decorate your little folders using the scrapbook papers that we carry at our stores.  Pictured are the Kaisercraft Island Escape collection and Amy Tangerine's On A Whim collection.  (I LOOOVE the gold letter "thickers" and tropical/summery clear stickers in Amy's collection!)

 

Have fun, and stay connected for more We-R-Memory Keepers news
and updates!

Erika @ PC 



 

Pineapple Quote!

Pineapples!

Just can't get enough of this fun tropical fruit!

We've been getting in TONS of pineapple-themed goods at our stores including bags, ceramics and wooden serving platters.  This is the perfect time to stock up for summer entertaining, so it's time to come on down and get crafty!

Today, I have a great painting project that would be great for kids as well as adults for those artsy get-togethers.  It's time to bring the fun of the boozy painting classes home!  All you need are basic pineapple colors like yellows, oranges, greens, oranges and some tans, as well as a cool tropical blue and white for the contrasting background.  You will also need a tan Stabilo marker, a black fine tip acrylic Montana or DecoColor marker, as well as a White Gelly Roll. 

Here, I painted on a natural slice of wood for a rustic feel, but feel free to paint on a canvas or wooden pallet.  Whatever floats your boat!

 

 

I first laid down a coat of white and then, while it was still wet, blended in some Delta Americana AcrylicTropical Blue for a lighter toned turquoise blue.  Once that background layer was dry, I used Ceramcoat Acrylic in Butter Yellow to paint the top three quarters of an oblong shape for the pineapple.  This took two coats for good coverage. 

 

After this was dry, I went ahead and painted the leaves.  Using upstrokes, I started at the top of the pineapple and tapered the tops of the leaves by slowly turning my brush sideways. (As a note, I used a 1 inch synthetic flat brush.)  I mixed a different shades of green such as Ceramcoat Spring Green and Delta Americana Chartreuse just to add more depth and dimension.  Just don't add too much!  You will be writing over the pineapple afterwards, so don't put too much effort into making it too detailed! 

 

I then used the Stabilo pen to lightly sketch the "eyes" of the pineapple.  This is where I brought a bit more detail into the painting, but feel free to use a paint marker or regular acrylic paint.  You can add a little more detail in this area, depending on how long of a quote you use.  After this was dry, I wrote the quote "You are the pineapple of my eye." in black Montana marker straight over the pineapple.

 

 

Afterwards, I used the white Gelly Roll gel pen to add some 3D effects to the letters!  I love the sketchy look, so I went over my lines multiple times.

 

 

Once everything was dry, I sprayed the painting with a light and even coat of Acrylic Sealer.  This is to prevent the water-based pens like the Stabilo and the Gelly Roll from smudging in the future.

 

 

And there you have it! 

Again, you can always experiment and make it your own.  The steps I used only took me about an hour.  Having a blow dryer or heat gun on hand would help in speeding up the process.  (Waiting for paint to dry can be a real drag.)  If you want to have a more detailed pineapple, go for it!  Want to use a different quote?  Fantastic!  If you're having a painting party, everyone can put their own spin on their painting.  Seeing everyone's unique style is always the best part!  Plus, what better party favor to go home with than a piece of summery décor and some renewed artistic confidence?

 

Cheers!

Erika



Distressed Mason Jars

Mason jars!

The number of uses of this beloved jar has grown so much since its uni-tasking canning days.

(Bringing a little bit of Good Eats reference into this..😄)

Now it can be used as storage for small craft items or random doodads, soap dispensers for those

Urban or Industrial Chic bathrooms, and even plant pots!  We all need that simple and fresh look for the kitchen table, right?  What's better than a clear mason jar and some lovely flowers from the garden? (Or the neighbor's garden?)

Here, I have a way that you can add a little bit of Shabby Chic to your Mason Jar centerpiece.

Behold the basic technique of sand-paper distressing!

Here is a close up of a jar that was spray-painted with Chalky Finish spray paint in Morning Sky.

Gorgeous, isn't it?  It' s the perfect and elegant French blue tone for Spring!  Notice anything different about thatlittle distressed bit?  Right!  It has a tinge of penny-copper so that it looks like a distressed copper pot.  (Actually, it was Design Master spray paint in Rose Gold!)

Rose Gold and Copper just add that right amount of "antique" (antiquity?) to a craft piece.  It's both classic and modern with its pinkish metallic hue.   Here's a shot of the inside.

 

 All you need is a few spritzes!  It's best not to overdo it so that the paint doesn't all pool to the bottom.  The same goes for the outside of the mason jar.  After spraying the inside, turn the jar upside down and spray in light even coats.

Here are the two Spring-time Mason jars that I created using beautiful cool-toned pastel colors.

The one on the right is that perfect minty hue (Ubermatte's Mist), with its cover painted in rose gold once again.  As always, experiment, experiment.  Creativity stems from both inspiration and experimentation, so don't be afraid of those lovely mistakes.  It's trial and error!

Also, don't forget to have fun!

Erika @ PC

Shaker Grad Pics!

Graduates!  It's time to send your grad photos to friends and family!

 Now, we are all familiar with the traditional black cal folder and the message 

written in white gold or silver pen.

IT'S TIME TO BREAK THE RULES.

Today, we have two awesome ways to deck out your senior portraits!

 

First way: Cardstock! There are so many colorful designs to choose from

in our stores!  All you have to do is choose a theme and pattern and, with just a few scrapbooking 

techniques, you can add some color to that plain black cal folder!  Add some ephemera embellishments and even some pop-up accents!

Here, I used a couple papers from Amy Tangerine's new On a Whim Collection.

Just as a heads up, Ben Franklin Crafts is selling Lauhala print Cal Folders!

This item is exclusively sold at our stores, so don't miss out!  They add a great "Island" touch,

which is great for sending photos out-of-state.  Paired with cute tropical-themed paper, it is ADORABLE.

Notice the glitter yet?  Yes, there are sequins and glitter on the photos!

I used the We-R-Memory Fuse Tool to make the graduates' photos into "shaker photos"!

                                                                                  
 It's a pretty simple process, really.  All you need is scrapbook sleeves, sequins, glitter and your graduate's photo!  Slip the photo into the sleeve and place it flush against the corner.  (That way, all you need to do is fuse two sides!)  Slide some sequins and glitter onto the photo and fuse the remaining two sides to seal them in.  Lastly, cut off the excess sleeve plastic! 

Back to the Lauhala print.  It can be a little tricky to work with for it can go in either the "tacky" direction or the "cute" direction depending on how you use it. 

                                                     
Just like working with textures in mixed media, mixing a fun and modern print consisting of simple shapes with the photo-realistic lauhala print can balance everything out.  And of course, Amy Tangerine will have that perfect, quirky and colorful, tropical paper!  Here, I used the other, more solid side of the tropical print paper to create a space for a short message.  The square could even be made into a pocket large enough for a graduation or grad party invitation!

 Here are the close-ups of the "shaker photos" .   I slid these photos into the decorated Cal-Folders and it really brought everything together.  It added that extra gold accent and "fun factor" to the portraits.   Wouldn't these be fun to get in the mail?  I was having a ball shaking them after they were fused! 😀

There are so many ways to customize your graduation photo to make it really represent who you are and what you're all about!  Have fun with it because this is your celebration, Graduate!

Congrats!

Erika @ PC

Graduation Centerpiece

If our stores' AWESOME displays haven't already given it away, Graduation Season has officially started!  It's time to start weaving and braiding those leis, to send out those Senior portraits to relatives you may not have been aware of until now, and to start ordering those graduation posters and banners!;)   Another thing that probably every parent has had on their  "HAVING A CHILD" To-Do List for the past 17 or 18 years is of course their graduate's GRADUATION PARTY!

 I've seen everyone from the last minute decorators to those who come in right after Valentine's Day, searching for ideas and inspiration (See what I did there?) on how to decorate for their child's grad party.  I'm talking banners, centerpieces, cake stands, table covers, favors and more.  

Well, today I have a centerpiece project that is really easy and quick to make!

All you need are a few items!

 

For the cap I used a 12x12" piece of black chipboard that I cut down to a 9x9 square, 12x12" black cardstock, embroidery floss for the tassel, and a black brad.   I made the base of the cap with the cardstock, cutting two 3 1/2 x 12" wide strips, with one of the strips having a triangular shape coming out at least one more inch.  This is for that front part of the cap that goes over the forehead.  I made a basic tassel by winding the floss around four of my fingers and tying it off at the center.  Then I secured the end of the tassel to the center of the grad cap with the brad.

 

On the bubble vase, I took some alcohol inks and then, me being a Pearl City graduate, dripped some purple, silver and cool pearl (lavender) straight onto the glass.  To give it a splattered look, I blew on some small drops that I squeezed onto the glass and let the ink sort of spread to create a "fuzzy" look.  Letting some of the ink dry in the dripping state also adds to the paint splatter look. 

After I let the alcohol inks completely dry, I wrote on top of the design using a white oil-based marker.  Oil-based paint markers are always going to be the best for glass when you want an opaque and permanent line.  Also, they won't scratch off like their acrylic counterparts!  I gave the letters a shadow detail using a thinner black oil-based marker and then filled the vase with a strand of the warm white firefly lights!  That is really what makes this centerpiece shine!

 

 

If you really want to make things fun (and take advantage of the lights), how about a cute face?  Yes!  This can be double-sided!  You could even cut your graduate's school logo out from vinyl and stick it onto the glass.  Coordinate the color of the lights to the school!  Red for Radford and Kaimuki, Blue for Moanalua or Waipahu?  Even the hat and tassel can be changed up! 

Have fun!

 

Erika @ PC